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Trouble on the Roof of the World

Updated Feb. 3, 2005 12:01 a.m. ET

Nepal is one of the world's poorest nations. Its GDP per capita, estimated at a little over $200 per annum, is almost half that of nearby Bangladesh. The Heritage Foundation and this newspaper rate its economy as "mostly unfree" in this year's Index of Economic Freedom. On Tuesday, it took a huge step backward politically as well with the introduction of one-man rule.

Given its physical remoteness and its lack of economic interaction with most of the rest of the planet, it is tempting to shrug off the actions of...